


for prayer

by babysrare



Category: The Pacific (TV)
Genre: 1980s, Alternate Universe, Boys In Love, F/M, First Time, Just let the boys be happy, M/M, Slow Burn, cmbyn inspired, could have been set in italy but france seemed more fitting sorry abt it!!, eugene is a romantic aw, i listened to lana del rey while writing this so blame her for the angst, literature references out the wazoo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-22
Updated: 2019-03-22
Packaged: 2019-11-27 13:21:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18195137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/babysrare/pseuds/babysrare
Summary: The old house was littered in vines with flora growing out of each and every pore in the bricks along the side. There was a garden out front, and although tidy, was a mix and match game of different personalities and tastes. The large double red door was nestled beneath an archway, and had paint chipping off of it from the bottom. The house itself was large in size, but seemed like every inch of it had been and was lived in and loved. Nestled into an almost forest of trees, and hidden along a bumpy dirt path, it was obvious the distance between itself and town was deliberate to keep the occupants inside hidden and isolated from any hustle and bustle of everyday life. A man leaned outside of a second story window with a lit cigarette hanging off of his lips- his gaze far away and contemplative. Almost as if he had everything and nothing on his mind at once. Eugene Sledge stood outside of this house, and fixed the place and the man with a quizzical stare. It was at that moment the ginger wondered whether he should have taken his independent study in Italy instead.





	for prayer

**Author's Note:**

> hi hi hi!! so, i've never actually written a proper fanfiction before, and due to my unwavering love for joe mazzello and rami malek it just seemed proper for my first one to be in this lovely fandom!! please go easy on me if there are any mistakes as this isn't beta read and is solely my word vomit :') i just returned from a trip to italy, and couldn't help but think of my boys elio and oliver and wondered what it would be like for eugene and snaf to be in a similar sort of situation. also, i love france, and with merriell's creole background and jay's french-ish background it just seemed more fitting for the entire piece to be set in france! alrighty then, i won't give too much away but please bear with me as i try to work out this ranty sort of fic :)  
> of course ZERO disrespect intended towards the veterans !! this is solely based on the tv characters themselves, and not actually representative of the real life men and women

There was one thing Eugene Sledge was afraid of and that was becoming his mother. Mind you he had the utmost respect for the woman. She was a doting housewife and caring mother, but she was also the epitome of textbook definition Southern woman. She went to the markets on Sunday afternoons right after early morning mass, and had tea with the other neighborhood ladies to gossip about the other women who didn't fit into their idealistic type of person. Mary Frank Sledge lived her life through routines, and cycles, and that frightened Eugene to no end.

He was terrified of becoming that monotonous. The cycle was already starting for him. He would get up early each morning at about six, and sit on the porch with his coffee until the sun was just peeking over the horizon. Then, he would go on a walk with their family dog (which honestly was his dog since he gave the old thing the most love and affection out of all of the Sledges) and sit by the creek recording whatever flora and fauna he found until about nine. At ten he had his morning classes down at the local university, and around lunch he would go to the cafe just by the science building and order a coffee and croissant. The rest of his afternoon was spent studying, or shooting the shit with his best friend Sidney Phillips. Sid was another constant in his life. He was his best, and quite honestly, his only friend. The singular person he trusted more than anyone else in the world, more than his family. He told him everything, and in turn Sidney told him everything too.

Since childhood they were glued at the hip. When Eugene broke his wrist one time jumping off of the swings in grade school Sidney had rustled up the courage to take him home and tell the good doctor Sledge what had happened. When Sidney developed a massive crush on the school's untouchable girl Mary Hudson Eugene was there to help him court her, and properly ask her on a date. Sidney had all the bravery and cockiness a Southern boy should have while Eugene developed a gentle nature and sweet personality that a Southern gentleman should have. They were each other's hero and sidekick taking the best parts of each other and melding them into the same person. Unstoppable.

That's precisely why Eugene had a pit in his stomach. The university thought it smart of him to go on an independent study trip, and truly experience another culture and record the other flora and fauna in the world. They wanted to send him to some remote place in Europe, and have him write some journal about his experience there. On paper the whole situation sounded perfect. He'd be able to get away from his monotonous lifestyle, and relearn how to breathe air and maybe finally find some sense of his true self. He'd get away from the watchful gaze of his mother, and his father's knowing eyes. He could walk down the street and be some nobody who could be whoever he wanted, and not have to worry about his affairs getting out to his mother during some afternoon gossip session with one of the church women. There was a downside to it all. How could he just up and leave his life? Leave Sidney behind, and leave Deacon behind. The poor dog was getting old, ready to croak at any moment. He wanted to be around for that moment, and say goodbye to his childhood pet. He didn't want to leave for the summer and miss a hot day where he and Sidney could go down to the lake and swim until their lips turned blue. It seemed rather privileged of him to have this sort of choice, and he knew there were bigger problems in the world, but this was his problem and a problem he'd have to face rather soon.

So, yeah, he was terrified.

Maybe change would be good for him, and maybe it wouldn't be. No way of knowing without actually trying.

That's why he was stuck with yet another choice. Where to go? He had a few options splayed around him in his bedroom. Scattered articles of places, and descriptions of what he may encounter. The host families he may be staying with. There was a little place in Italy he reckons he may be happy going to, but his eyes kept wandering to one specific location. France. He knew very little French, but he figures taking up classes wouldn't be too hard before leaving. He did have a month, after all. Eugene picks up the grainy picture of the villa he'd be staying at. It was a picturesque house. Exactly what someone could expect going to a little village in France. His eyes scanned over the occupants of the household. It was like a trail mix of misfits existing in one place. In reality he wondered if they even got along, but something about the absurdity of the group made him more endeared to it.

There was a Frenchman among the group: Jay de L'eau. He seemed more meek than the rest of them. Jay owned the complex, and inherited it from a long string of family- generation to generation. Eugene examined the photograph with careful fingers, moving his thumb towards Jay. He had kind eyes, but a tight lipped smile. Like he was hiding something, or keeping a joke at bay. With a slight raise to his brow, the man was obviously not quite the one in charge, but knew exactly where his place was within the villa.

Eugene's careful eyes slid to the woman among the group. An Australian woman named Florence Risely. She had on a pair of shorts, and a button up blouse. Her painted lips were stretched wide across her face, and Eugene smiled fondly like he was actually with her. Like he actually knew what she was smiling about, and was smiling along with her. Florence was married to a man also among the misfits in the complex. Her arm was presumably wrapped around his waist, and she was gripping him tight. Her husband, a man named R.V. Burgin, had his eyes trained on her. A gentle smile also on his lips, and the adoration was clear in his eyes. Eugene couldn't help but compare them to his parents, and he wondered if his mother and father would look at each other like that. So full of love, youth, and promise. He'd seen flashes of that sort of romance in every day life at home, but couldn't help to wonder what it would be like to truly be experiencing the young love that couple conveyed. He couldn't help but yearn to have that for himself, but dismissed that thought as quickly as it had come.

There were two men not pictured but still mentioned. Robert Leckie, and Bill Smith. They were a couple it stated, and if there was a problem with that then to not even consider living among them. Eugene had zero qualms with it. Of course, he had been preached to and taught that it was wrong, but love was love, and he couldn't deny anybody that regardless of gender or sex. Leckie was a writer it stated, and could be heard tapping away into the night working on novels that would never be finished. Eugene wanted to talk with Leckie, and pick his brain. To find out what sort of books he could get lost in, and wondered if they possibly shared the same interests.

The most prominent feature in the group was that a fair amount of them had served. Leckie, Smith, two others Andrew Haldane and Edward Jones, and finally Merriell Shelton. They all served in the same company during the Vietnam war, and had presumably stuck together afterwards. Eugene wondered what brought those men to France, and to Jay de L'eau. How Florence, and Burgin fit into the mix. These were all mysteries that he figured he'd never solve if he didn't go there himself. That, his ever burning curiosity, is what pushed him to make his final decision. His study was about plants and animals sure, but human nature was much more compelling and something he figured he'd have to understand to even begin comprehending himself.

He decided supper would be the best way to break the news to his parents, and get the worst of it over with. Time to take chances. A leap of faith was all it would take, and Eugene had always been a man of faith.

**Author's Note:**

> sorry this is so very short, i'm just excited to get this show on the road and to get all the prologue stuff out of the way !!  
> visit me on tumblr!! @babysrare i'm way more lurky on there though, so don't expect me to post much soz


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